Paulhauser

1 hour ago, binky_bass said:

I've had 2 or 3 of these over the years, then genuinely are very good basses, even at the price point they were when they were new. Looking forward to giving this one a blast in a day or two! 

Come to think of it, this Dickens model has some quite advanced Bartolini preamp package in it. I did a search and it indeed is quite something 🙂

Nice score Russ! The GTBD was on my bucket list for a few years albeit I was not succesfull in getting one. I had a GT-7 though for a few years, the regular overseas Conklin 7er and that was a great bass, heavy but balanced exceptionally well with the huge body and fat neck. I seem to remember that the neck on the Dickens model is somewhat narrower and thinner than the GT-7. I think you are up for a treat!

I was on a quest a few years back to get a 4 string PJ Euro with 35" for the band I played in at that time. Within a period of about two years I saw 3 for sale, 2 ended up with me. (the 3rd was in Norway and customs were complicating things a bit so I did not buy it)
They are rare. 

15 hours ago, Eldon Tyrell said:

Are there 34 and 35 versions of it? It only said 2016 Ian Hill signature bass, so I assume it is the 34 one. 

Per definition they are 34", but I came across at least two or three Ian Hills that were 35" 

Throughout the years Spector produced a few 35" Euro 4s, sometimes called Euro435 with the same PJ setup and all the other specs being exactly the same and from the outside it is almost impossible to tell a 34" from the 35" except for one telltale sign. So if you know what to look for you can spot the 35" Euros pretty easily. My Euro 4 35" pictured below and if you look at the bridge pickup it almost lines up with the balance and the treble pot, whereas on standard Euro 4s the pickups are in different locations (and relative to the pots, too. ) 

I had another 435, same layout and the latest 35" Ian Hill I've seen (seller confirmed the scale lenght and the IH model sign on the back of the headstock

23 minutes ago, Eldon Tyrell said:

Well, I tried securing another potential "not for sale" bass, the Ian Hill signature model, today. Unfortunately, I was outbid on ebay 😞 

Was it 34” or 35”?

@Eldon Tyrell I think you are lucky to have a "not-for-sale" bass, meaning you've found something that fits you so well and also lucky for the Starr bass- haven't seen many out in the wild. It is fun to try new things even with the caveat of them most probably not becoming a not for sale bass....

On 04/06/2025 at 19:50, Eldon Tyrell said:

Don't know who the bloke on the left is. Any idea?)

I'm pretty sure he is Rachel Bolan from Skid Row

10 hours ago, Cosmo Valdemar said:

 

It's the voice of God. 

and if it is not, then God never spoke 🙂

@Eldon Tyrell that's a beauty, black cherry is one of the best finishes for me on a Spector, I had a Euro 5LX but foolishly sold it. 

Too bad about the neck profile but there's nothing you can do really other than selling it it. Once you play the Starr you'll always be reminded....

On 28/04/2025 at 15:52, Eldon Tyrell said:

Thanks for asking, Paul. Well, looks like customs wondered whether or not the bass needed a CITES certificate. I was able to convince them that it did not need one. The bass is on the way to the local depot now and as soon as I have paid taxes and duties, it should get delivered. Probably on Wed or Thur. Then, after checking the neck shape, it will take me a few seconds to figure out whether I'll keep it or sell it here on via BD or BB. Nearly there (BTW, the bass arrived in the UK on the 7th!, that's THREE WEEKS AGO)!

Guess you already sold it 😉

9 hours ago, three said:

Absolutely love that violet - could I ask who performed the respray?

It was done in Hungary by Boldogh guitars. (The others too)

Well, we are all different, aren't we? I have Schallers on all my Spectors which were / are used for hundreds of gigs and they (Schallers) plus the same leather straps on each keep them in the position I like (see profile pic)  

53 minutes ago, Mudpup said:

That's interesting...I thought it was just me.  I went from Schaller locks on all basses to just the normal buttons and rubber washers on everything and they all felt more comfortable on the strap. You wouldn't think it would make much difference would you? It seemed to change the pressure points over my shoulder and tuck the bass back into me a bit. That's on all 3 - a Spector Pulse 2, a Warwick Proline and a Zon Sonus

21 minutes ago, three said:

Agreed - I remember posting a fairly lengthy contribution on just this issue around five or six years ago - I find that Schallers permit my basses to subtly tip forward a little, creating a bit of an uncomfortable angle between chest and the top

edge of the bass.  I jettisoned straplocks in favour of rubber washers years ago. 

11 hours ago, Sean said:

Neck shaving and refin is at the luthier end of the Tech to Luthier scale.

Couldn't agree more. 

I'm not big on mods but if you have a man for the job it can be fun and the three I made done turned out great 

My first Spector was done in '16 , a LX5 trans black originally, the controls moved to the cavity cover and the whole thing was refinished to a violet sort of color, highgloss on the body, oil finish on the neck. Played many gigs and even today on of the first bass I grab for practice or writing. 

The second was a pre-LX Euro5 natural, didn't do anything to the controls (East deluxe) but swapped the PUs to a 40P and J plus shaved the neck which was beefier originally than the LX

The 3rd one was a blue SSD NS-4CR in boring blue that became classic white. I sold this long ago as 4 stringers weren't much use for me but with the full maple wings and super quiet Noll electronics it sounded massive. 

I don't think I have a pic at hand but you get the idea, a white NS Spector with dot inlays. 

The thing about refinish and mods is that you should do it only if the basses are keepers as they affect resale value (eventhough I received several offers for the pink and the purple)

The pink and the purple have hundreds of gigs in them and keep counting and I love what was done to them even after 8-9 years. But these kinda things are not for everyone and to this day these are the only instruments of mine that were modified (apart from a pu or preamp swap) 

@attackbass yeah, I had the feeling of stating the obvious 🙂

11 minutes ago, Eldon Tyrell said:

Thanks and good idea. Problem is, I am not really into neck shaving and refin. However, if someone knows someone who can do it, then it could be an option. 

I had mine made as I wouldn't want to do such things myself. Refinishing is too much of the same thing over and over, apply clear coat, sand, repeat,  and I'm not good in those. 

On 26/04/2025 at 11:48, attackbass said:

Anyone ever use tapered B strings on thier spector? 

 

Just out a set on my LT5 today and the low b sounds like it's going through a harmonizer and not in a good way!

 

Never knew this was a thing. Luckily my I have a Dunlop artist deal so hoping I can just exchange the other 8 sets I have!! 😅

I did, in fact several sets of Dunlop tapered sets were used on my Euro 5 LX and never had this issue. 
I had with other basses though, albeit with normal strings and the culprit was always the distance between the pickups (magnets) and the string, them being too close...

2 hours ago, Eldon Tyrell said:

Thanks for asking, Paul. Well, looks like customs wondered whether or not the bass needed a CITES certificate. I was able to convince them that it did not need one. The bass is on the way to the local depot now and as soon as I have paid taxes and duties, it should get delivered. Probably on Wed or Thur. Then, after checking the neck shape, it will take me a few seconds to figure out whether I'll keep it or sell it here on via BD or BB. Nearly there (BTW, the bass arrived in the UK on the 7th!, that's THREE WEEKS AGO)!

Fingers crossed for both the safe delivery and the preferred neck shape 🙂

Given your past with the necks haven't you thought about buying a run-of-the-mill used euro, shave the neck to your liking and refinish? (that's what I've done with the pink one)

@Eldon Tyrell any news of the bass in transit?

1 hour ago, Woodinblack said:

that looks nice!

Have a thing for piano black finishes lately.
The Nordstrand in my other Prestige MS5 sounds really great and the preamp is useful, too.
This new SR line has an upgraded preamp with the hexa mid system for what it worth. 

There is a 5506, pretty much the same specs with different woods and finish.
One thing I'm noticing tha the bodies are wider than they used to be  and i'm not liking it. 

I don't think this was covered here, but according to Ibanez
"2025 brings with it the long-awaited revamp of the SR prestige line. With nine new models in total, there’s an ideal instrument for every bassist out there seeking the comfort, tone, and playability of a Japanese-made SR."

More infor on the Ibby site

Quite fancy this SR3506 from the new model lineup...

42 minutes ago, biro said:

Ah, just some little rubber feet I had for a shelf. One sure fire way to avoid digging into the wood with my fingernail!

Clever! 🙂

9 hours ago, biro said:

Oh, wow, the 1306 series is incredible. Here is mine, with the sandwich body, which actually now has coil splittable EMG TWX pick ups.

Very nice bass and the X series TW's are killer. I used to have the same 1306 but sold a good ten years ago. 

What are the round wood inserts in between the pickups?

5 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

I had ne, the spacing was great but the neck spacing was actually quite wide

I remember this being discussed, maybe it was you? Something along the lines of the neck not tapering as expected, even considering the very tight spacing at the bridge. 

@SumOne we all have preferences and I happen to like the tighter spacing because I feel like I fall in between the strings on basses with wider spacing.

2 hours ago, SumOne said:

One issue I have with the 5 string SRs is the tight string spacing

One of the main reasons I love them (and their 6ers, too)